Deputy Higher Education Minister Fu Ah Kiow said some students may not qualify for study loans from the National Higher Education Fund Corporation (PTPTN) if they name their parents as guarantors.

"At the moment, parents and relatives are not guarantors...If parents are guarantors, there would be some loan applicants who will not qualify," he told the Dewan Rakyat today.

This could be due to the financial status of the parents in repaying the loan amount. The deputy minister also said that his ministry has no plans at present in making the parents to stand as guarantors for the applying students.

Fu also said loan defaulters were being traced through a computerised central credit reference information system.

Member of Parliament Badruddin Amiruddin (BN-Jerai) had suggested that parents be made guarantors as they would be able to insist that their children repay their loans.

He also proposed that the cash-strapped PTPTN should obtain loans from the Employees Provident Fund, in order to continue assisting young Malaysians in pursuing tertiary education.

Other measures could include facilitating repayment via banks, giving rebates for repayment before the deadline, setting up an interactive website to allow students to check on their loan status, and working with employers to monitor the status of employees who have an ourstanding loan record.

Legal action

Of the 618,044 students who had applied for PTPTN study loans, 189, 231 who completed their studies between 1999 and 2004 have repaid loans.

However, at last December, only RM93 million of the RM420 million owing had been collected.

A total of 31,385 students have responded to the notices to pay up, while 19, 973 have been allowed to defer their repayments as they are unemployed. The remaining 137, 873 have not replied to the notices.

Last month, Higher Education Mminister Shafie Mohd Salleh said those reminded to pay up should act within 14 days or face legal action. About 200 students who received the notices earlier will be taken to court next month.